The fiction of literary friendship Writing in the Guardian, Wayne Gooderham concludes: “Judging by the stories that have been written about it, writers do not make the best of friends.” 10 Most Reclusive Literary Geniuses in History The world’s greatest writers use their literary genius to illustrate and comment on the human condition. And yet, […]
Publishing Words: The Future of Books Writing in The Harvard Crimson, Sofie C. Brooks discusses how the rise of ebooks may change the publishing industry: What the publishing industry faces right now is a customer base that demands a digital product even as the technology that makes these products possible is still in its early
We all need a little variety in our lives, so this week’s Monday Miscellany is a bit different than usual. Instead of linking to specific articles, today I’m linking to web sites that provide information for bibliophiles. Los Angeles Review of Books The LOS ANGELES REVIEW OF BOOKS is now in preview mode, while our
Why is dystopia so appealing to young adults? A dystopia is an imaginary world in which people live dehumanized lives of fear and subjugation; it’s the opposite of utopia. In this piece YA writer Moira Young examines why distopian novels such as Suzanne Collins’s recent Hunger Games trilogy are so popular with young people: Books
Book lovers rake in the reading as publishers release fall titles It’s time to trade in the beach reads for the usually longer and more serious fall reads. The Sacramento Bee‘s Allen Pierleoni lists upcoming new titles, some by big-name authors (think Joan Didion, Lee Child, Stephen King, Alice Hoffman, and Sue Grafton ) in
Vashon Great Books club one of oldest in U.S. The Seattle Times spotlights 92-year-old Grace Crecelius: For 61 years, Grace Crecelius has cracked the books. Not just any books, mind you, but the works of Plato, Descartes and Kant, Shakespeare, Marx and Freud. At 92, Crecelius is the oldest member of what may be one
Nine seems to be this week’s lucky number. Nine Pilgrimages For the Lover of Western Literature A pilgrimage is the focal point around which a journey wraps, not the raison d’etre per se (that is the journey itself) but rather the pulley on the far end of the rope that ratchets you out of your
The greatest death scenes in literature Five judges of the 2012 Wellcome Trust book prize for medicine in literature ponder the question “What makes for a great literary death scene?” Tim Lott calls their choices “eclectic.” Take a look, and see if you have other favorite death scenes to add to the list. The 10
2012 Stamp Preview: A Stamp a Day The United States Postal Service will be issuing some new literature-related stamps in 2012. Click on the numbers to see more information about these: #2 Edgar Rice Burroughs #11 O. Henry #31 Twentieth-Century Poets: Elizabeth Bishop, Joseph Brodsky, Gwendolyn Brooks, E. E. Cummings, Robert Hayden, Denise Levertov, Sylvia
Ikea is changing its long-lived Billy bookshelf. Is print dead? Ikea will make changes to its low-cost, high-volume Billy bookshelf this fall. And to some, that means books are dying. Ten Crime Books You Have to Read Before You Die This title is way misleading, since there are two lists of 10 plus numerous alternates.
